Veritasity Intro

I have noticed that I spend a lot of time defending Christianity. If you happen to be a member of the Christian sub-culture that opening phrase immediately makes you think of "apologetics" - always ready to give an argument as to what and why you believe. If, like me, you grew up in the Christian sub-culture then the idea of regularly ticking off the box that says we should be talking about and defending your faith is a good thing - in fact a very good thing, its one of the things that gets you a gold star in our sub-culture. However the problem is I'm not defending Christ.  I'm not talking about my spiritual life.  I can't get that far in the conversation. 

Allow me to illustrate.  I currently live and work in Central Europe and occasionally I travel for work.  On one such trip I was in Sarajevo with some colleagues.  In between meetings and a late dinner we had some time and so stopped in a local bar to sample the regional beer. 

(which I might add is quite tasty)   

The conversation got around to religion.  Its amazing how often that happens when you are an ex-pastor.  Anyways, I digress.  The question that was posed to me was along the lines of; "Randy, how come your lot is always causing problems?"  What followed was an hour long conversation about wars, discrimination, sexual exploitation, misuse of power and hatred.  

How did we get to this point? The point where the default understanding of a Christian is such a negative thing. Why doesn't the phrase, "Oh, he's a Christian" conjure up images of Christ, something positive? Why is that we as Christians are repugnant to the world? 

There is no simple answer to this conundrum(I like that word, it makes me sound smart doesn't it?). But it is something that needs to be addressed. I'm not talking about winning a popularity contest or being named to the Top 10 Trendiest Philosophies of the Year. I would just like it if when people looked at Christians they saw Christ and not a collection of jerks.

Unfortunately I have found in my travels and conversations that this negative image is the most commonly held view out beyond the pale of the church doors(and sometimes within the church doors).  We need to do something different, because what we are doing isn't working. And for me that is the biggest issue. Christianity is disappearing from the Western world and how does Christianity react - by doing exactly what it has been doing for the last 50 years or longer. We keep doing what we have always been doing and we expect things to get better. That is not a recipe for success.

Thus, the beginning of my blog.  I wanted a place to share a few things I have seen and experienced as it relates to the spiritual reality of life.  I want to state from the beginning that I strongly believe that there is a God, that God is good, and it is possible to relate to that God.  I can not prove this to you, beyond  anecdotal stories.  Nonetheless it is the foundation of my life's philosophy.  Therefore my blog will always start with these presuppositions in the background.  Everything else is open for debate.

Veritasity is the combination of the word "veritas" (which means truth - but is also the name of one of the sexiest cars I have ever ridden in - a 1949 Veritas Coupe) and "tenacity".   I want to chase after Truth, wherever it may be found, with a tenacity that will not be put in check by convenience, tradition, or  discomfort.